Yesterday, I was reporting on the will of Nicholas Blake which was written 20 Nov 1641 and probated 4 Feb 1642 I have now completed the transcription and it is part of this blog. Nicholas is talking about the Hibberd family including Winifred and her four sisters (I can find this family in the Parish Registers of Andover and their father was Christopher Hibberd). Perhaps he was a brother/cousin to Margaret Hibberd who was the mother of Nicholas. He remembers them first of all and sets aside a sum of money that is to be used by Joseph Hinxman senior or his son Joseph or failing their being able to follow up then he passes this request on to William Blake (of Andover) and his eldest son Richard to undertake to ensure that the money is put to use buying stocke that can then provide work for the Hibberd sisters in order that they can continue to take care of themselves.
The will is a really lucky find in that it clearly distinguishes between these families and puts a number of people into family lines (always helpful in these early days of the parish registers). Because he is dying without descendants he has named many many people in his family. You feel sorry for what may have been a tragic life but oh so grateful that he has taken the time to remember so many people. I have not yet transcribed the Probate but it was taken by William Blake of Eastontown. Where to move next is always the question and I shall look through the Hampshire wills to see what would be a good next step. I have a number of wills for the Blake family at Christchurch and it would be interesting to see if this family is descendant of the Andover Blake family or have they come down through Wiltshire and are descendant of the Wiltshire Blake family.
The will of Nicholas Blake:
1 In the name of the eternall and everliveing
2 God the father the sonne and the holy ghost in whose name I was baptized
3 and in whome only I hope and beleeve to be saved Amen, The twintith
4 day of November Anno D[o]m[n]i 1641 and in the seaventeenth yeare of the raigne
5 of our Soveraigne Lord Charles King of England Scotland Fraunce and
6 Ireland defender of the faith and etc I Nicholas Blake of Eastentowne w[it]hin
7 the parrish of Andever in the County of South[amp]ton gent being at the
8 makeing whereof sicke in body yet in good and p[er]fect remembrance for w[hi]ch as
9 for all the other good blessinges and benefits w[hi]ch yt hath pleased him to
10 bestowe uppon me I doe yeeld and give unto his divine nature most humble
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11 and hear to thankes beseeching him of his great mercie and goodnes to
12 pardon and forgive me all my sinnes and to receave my soule into his heavenly
13 kingdome And I doe make and declare this p[re]sente to be my last will and
14 Testament revokeing all former wills and Testaments And first and principally
15 I comend my soule into the hands of god the father the sonne and the holy
16 ghost by whose mercifull promises and by the only merrits death and
17 passion of Jesus Christ my only Saviour and Redeemer I hope to be
18 saved and to be made an inheritor of his heavenly kingdom My body yf
19 comend[ed] to be buried unto the earth in the Church of Andever neere unto the place where
20 my Ancestors have beene buried Item I give to the Church of Andever
21 thirty shillings Item I give to the Church of Knights Enham twentye
22 shillings Item I doe make my cosen William Blake of Eastentowne
23 aforesaid eldest sonne of my elder brother William Blake of Eastentowne
24 aforesaid my sole executor of this my last will and Testament Item I give
25 to all my godchildren twenty shillings a peece to be payed w[i]thin six months
26 after my decease they requireing the same Item I give to the poore people
27 of Andever such as are most ancient and have most need fourtye
28 shillings to be delivered to them at my funerall Item I give to Winnifred
29 Hibberd and her foure other sisters tenn pounds to be payed by my executor
30 unto my cosen Joseph Hinxman senior and Joseph his sonne and unto my cosen
31 William Blake of Andever and Richard Blake his sonne or to some of
32 them whome I doe desire soe to dispose and ymploy the same to at yt may
33 Be p[re]served and kept in stocke to keepe them in worke Item I give to
34 widow Hibberd their mother five shillings Item I give to Nicholas
35 Blake and Thomas Blake two of the sonnes of my cosen William
36 Blake of Eastontowne aforesaid fyftie pounds a peece to be payed unto
37 them when they shall attaine to the age of twenty one yeares Item I
38 give unto Sara Blake Anne Blake and Mary Blake three of the
39 daughters of my said cosen William Blake of Eastontown fyftie
40 pounds a peece to be payed unto them when they shall attayne to the
41 age of twenty one yeares or att such tyme as they shal[l ]be married
42 And my will and meaneing is that yf any of the Children of my said
43 cosen William Blake to whome I have by this last will given my
44 legacie unto shall happen to depart this life before such legacie shal[l ]be
45 growe due and payable then the legacie or legacies of him her or them
46 soe dyeing shal[l ]be paid and equally distributed amongst the survivors of
47 them Item I give to my kinswoman Mary Warberton widdowe of the towne
48 and county of Southampton twenty pounds to be payed unto her within
49 six moneths after my decease Item I give to the five children of the
50 said Mary Warberton now liveing twenty pounds a peece to be payed unto
51 them when they shall severally attaine to the age of twenty one yeares
51 or be married And yf any of them shall happen to depart this life before
52 they shall attaine that age or shall be married And yf any of them shall
53 Then my will and meaneing is that the legacie or legacies hereby given to
54 him her or them soe dyeing shal[l ]be paed and equally devided amongst the
55 survivors of them. Whereas Mrs. Venables of Andever doth owe unto
56 me divers sommes of money as by specialty remayning in my custody and
57 otherwise doth and may appeare. My will and meaneing is that for so much
58 thereof as will discharge the severall legacies hereby given to the children
59 of my cosen William Blake of Eastontowne and to the Children of my
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60 said kinswoman Mary Warberton shall remaine and continue in the hands of
61 the said Mrs. Venables at six pounds p[er] centum until such tyme as the same
62 shall severally and respectively growe due and payable unto them and either of
63 them she the said Mrs. Venables giving sufficient secureties to my executor
64 before named for the true payment thereof together w[i]th the interest and
65 profite for the only use and benefitt of the said Children Item I give to my
66 Sister Dorothie Smithe peece of gould of twenty two shillings of Queene
67 Elizabeths Coyne nowe in my custody And I give to my brother in lawe
68 William Smithe desireing him as my overseer of this my
69 last will to ayd and assist my executor the best he can All the rest of
70 my goods and Chattles I doe hereby give and bqueath to my said executor
71 requireing and chargeing him to be carefull in the performance of this my
72 last will and testament. In witness that this shall stand and remaine my
73 last will I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and yeare first above
74 written Nich: Blake [signed] And the same daye and yeare first w[i]thin
75 written I the said Nicholas Blake doe hereby further declare my will
76 and meaneing in manner and forme followeing that is to saye Item I doe
77 forgive unto Mrs. Venables w[i]thin named the somme of one hundred
78 pounds of the moneys she oweth me by specialty and otherwise And
79 doe desire that this clause may be counted and taken as part and p[a]rcell
80 of my wish in written last will and testament And in witnes that this
81 is my will and meaneing I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and
82 yeare first w[i]thin written Nich: Blake [signed] Published in the p[re]sence
83 of William Smith The same Legacies given by the Testator wer
84 e desired a little before his death might be subscribed to this his last will
85 Will and be reputed as part and parcell thereof. To Mr Matkins
86 vicar of Andever twenty shillings To his brother Mr. William Blake in
87 gould for remembrance twenty shillings To Tho: Blake the son of the said
88 Mr William Blake fyve pounds To Elizabeth Cload that attended
89 him in his sicknes twenty shillings William Smith [signed]
Records for the Hibberd family (early 1600s) at Andover (registers begin late 1580s):
Baptisms
Hibard Winifred daughter Hibard Christophur 1594 June 24
Hibard Alice daughter Hibard Christophur 1594 August 14
Hibard Fayerned daughter Hibard Christophur 1597 July 30
Hibard Philip daughter Hibard Thomas 1591 October 18
Hibbard ……ard son Hibbard Christopher 1589 July 16
Hibbard Mary daughter Hibbard Christophur 1601 May 2
Hibberd Christopher son Hibberd Christopher 1611 August 11
Hibberd Christour son Hibberd Christophur 1595 November 26
Hibberd Thomas son Hibberd Roberd 1602 December 19
Hibbert Margaret daughter Hibbert Christopher 1604 January 26 of Andover
Hibbert Richard son Hibbert Christopher 1606 August 30
Hiberd Amy daughter Hiberd Christophur 1603 April 3
Hiberd Dortye daughter Hiberd Christophur 1590 December 16
Marriages
Braye John Hibbard Susana 1587 October 29
Hopgood Rowland Hibbard Elizabeth 1597 January 9
Burials
Hibard Christofer 1636 July 22
Hibbard Alce 1592 February 24 widow
Hibbard Christour son Hibbard Christophur 1589 October 2
Hibbard Christour son Hibbard Christphour 1596 January 6
Hibbard Dorathy 1657 February 13
Hibbard Robert 1589 April 17
Hibberd Susan daughter Hibberd Christopher 1610 June 23
Hibbert Margarett daughter Hibbert Christopher 1604 February 26
Hibbert Thomas 1604 February 6 died February 3, elder
Robert may be the father of Margaret Hibberd married to William Blake and the parents of Nicholas. Margaret was buried in 1613. Christopher is not buried until 1636 and perhaps that is why Nicholas is remembering the family so kindly (he does not imply close kinship in the will). Given the unusual surname though and the location one might suspect a cousin of his mother or perhaps a nephew.
I have also added a page to my Blog which appears under the title Pages (one can tab back and forth between the regular blog posting on "Home" that I make and this rather permanent addition which stands on its own and can be opened from the side panel "Guild of one name studies").
It is on the Guild of One Name Studies and grows out of a request that I had to do a short writeup on how I value my Guild membership. It was impossible for me to do it in a couple of lines but I allowed for a short quote to be made from the information to be placed on another blog. That inspired me to then publish my own thoughts on the Guild.
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